I’ve fallen and I can’t get up...

I guess it was bound to happen, but given the fact that my crystal ball is once again in the shop, I didn’t see it coming. For something completely different, Mother Nature gave me some trouble last week, so there were fallen trees, insurance agents and piles of aggravation to occupy me and keep me close to home.

I’ve recently taken on some volunteer work at the Monticello Literacy Center (www.literacysullivan.org), an organization that is desperately in need of help. These folks are, as a group, (IMHO) simply amazing in their dedication to our community. That being said, it is not a commitment to be taken lightly, and adding another few hours a week to my already overbooked schedule has taken a toll.

I had highlighted over a dozen things on my schedule of events last week, culled from the many resources available (artsalliancesite.org/calendar) and while trying to decide which to attend, fell asleep. For 12 hours. I awoke shocked, disoriented, angry, confused and a little bit concerned. Every so often, I run into someone who feels it necessary to tell me that I have the easiest job on earth. Apparently, they think that I spend an hour or two at my desk, writing about fun things in the Catskills, and then spend the rest of the week playing with the dog and watching TV.

As most of you know, I love what I do—but it is a job. I can’t write about life in the Catskills without going out and living it, which I spend at least 40 hours a week doing. This month alone, I have put over 800 miles on the truck, dragging my sorry butt from one end of the Hudson Valley to the other. Again, having no psychic abilities, it did not occur to me that my first Passover without my beloved mother would put me into a depression and cause an hours-long crying jag that left me sad and feeling a little sorry for myself. I’m not proud of it, but make no apologies.

I made up my mind, then and there, to stop running. I canceled all of my plans. I went on Facebook and announced that I was unavailable for comment. Of course (what else is new?) I had friends coming up for the weekend—but they are adults and I left them to their own devices; and as far as I know, they managed just fine. I did not answer the phone. I did not start my spring cleaning or make plans with friends to go out strictly for personal pleasure.

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Jonathan Fox currently lives in Sullivan County. Having written for film and television, he now concentrates his efforts on novels, plays and assorted periodicals, along with his weekly "Humble Opinion" on life in the Catskills.